The present invention relates to a device for ventilating transmissions and to a transmission having such a device.
The following discussion of related art is provided to assist the reader in understanding the advantages of the invention, and is not to be construed as an admission that this related art is prior art to this invention.
Heat losses from a transmission result in temperature fluctuations in the transmission housing. The internal pressure in the transmission housing changes as a result of the fluctuations in temperature. These pressure differences between the housing interior and the environment of the housing are to be balanced out.
In the case of transmissions, in which the orientation of the lubricant level relative to the transmission axes remains unchanged during operation of the transmission, ventilation can be achieved by using a ventilation valve, which is arranged at a point on the transmission housing which lies above the lubricant level. When pivoting transmissions or transmissions that rotate about 360 degrees are involved, the use of such a valve is not possible, since, on account of the change in position of the transmission, the valve would drop to below the lubricant level and lubricant would thus escape from the transmission housing.
It would therefore be desirable and advantageous to address this problem and to obviate other prior art shortcomings.